Jalen Williams Set To Miss OKC's Opening Night Showdown vs. Rockets
Oct 21, 2025
Jalen Williams will be making his presence felt on opening night, which marks the occasion of the Oklahoma City Thunder receiving their 2025–26 championship rings. However, that’s about all that Thunder fans will be getting from Williams on this evening.
According to Thunder beat reporter Brandon Rahbar, J-Dub won’t be suiting up on October 21 against the Houston Rockets. The reason: Williams is still recovering from wrist surgery that he had this past summer.
This means that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander won’t have his All-Star teammate by his side when Kevin Durant and the much-hyped Rockets squad attempt to take over Paycom Center. Williams, who averaged 21.6 points per game on 48.4% shooting from the field last season, could have provided some mid-range scoring against the Rockets’ massive starting lineup.
As the Thunder took the NBA by storm in 2024–25, Williams raised his stock and legitimized himself as the team’s No. 2 scoring option behind SGA. Whereas the 23-year-old appeared to shrink under the spotlight in seasons past, Williams displayed a different type of confidence that assured Gilgeous-Alexander of a dependable partner from beginning to end.
At the same time, the third-year pro led by example, giving his fellow youngsters on the team a template for rising to the occasion amidst an abundance of naysayers. Foremost were the critics who questioned whether SGA and J-Dub’s young squad could withstand the pressure of the playoffs.
But Williams proved them all wrong by maintaining consistency in his production throughout the postseason (21.4 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 4.8 apg, 1.4 spg). When Gilgeous-Alexander was interviewed after his Finals MVP presentation, the Canadian star put his arm around Williams and wasted no time giving his running mate a ton of credit.
SGA, however, will have to rely on the contributions of Chet Holmgren and the rest of the OKC supporting cast as Williams recovers from surgery. He will reportedly be back sooner rather than later, and when he does, J-Dub is expected to help the Thunder masterfully dissect opponents on both ends of the floor. Doing so against the Rockets, however, will have to wait.
